Cleaved!

 

I just got CRKT’s newest Minimalist, the Cleaver.

CTKT's newest Minimalist, the Cleaver

You might think of it as a neck axe, but I think of it as a planing edge.  It weighs only 1.7 ounces.  Too light to actually chop, too small to generate swinging energy, but the 2.3 inch long edge can make clean slices and the cleaver head allows you grasp the handle front end for….

Okay, it’s a bit of a toy.  But it is still a very icey toy.  CRKT makes quality knives.  They are, dollar for dollar the best buy in any price range.  As with the other six Minimalist the finger grooves fit a surprisingly wide range of hands.

The blade is made from 5Cr15MOV and the elemental break down is:

Carbon - 0.45-0.50%

Chromium – 14.75%

Molybdenum – 0.68%

Vanadium – 0.10%

Manganese – 0.45%

This China’s equivalent of the German X50CrMoV15 steel, one of the most popular kitchen knife steels in mainstream German knives.  I’ve got to admit the sprinkle of vanadium, which forms very fine and hard carbides, ups the quality of this steel.

It has a Rockwell ‘C’ hardness of 55 to 57.  This should be relatively easy to resharpen on an ordinary stone and still hold an edge.  I will not be the first to tell you, always resharpen when you think it is getting dull, not when it is dull.

Like All Minimalist it comes with a neck sheath

CRKT calls this Minimalist “…high-carbon stainless steel cleaver (that) … safely rips through food packets or clothing thanks to the false front edge. The hole in the blade pays homage to the hanging hold on the old style kitchen cleavers.”  Well, they have to say something!

It is clear that CRKT and my definition of high carbon steel are different.  440A contains 1.1% carbon.  That’s in the high carbon steel range.

It’s made in China and as I said before it’s almost a toy, unless you need an edge.  When you need an edge, well, you work with what you have.  With the sheath you can drop the Cleaver in a pocket, duct tape inside your first aid kit, wear it under your shirt and it will be available if you need it.

Back Side

It would not be my first choice going off the pavement, but I always remember the end of the Tom Hanks movie “Cast Away” when he holds up a Swiss army key chain knife and mutters that everything would have been so much simpler with that knife.

You can find one for yourself under $40 at:  https://www.crkt.com/minimalist-cleaver.html

 

 

 

 

Switchblade or Automatic

Do you say ‘switchblade’ or ‘automatic knife’?

Sounds like a George Carlin question.  Switchblade is warm and fuzzy.  Automatic is hard and cold.

To me, this is what I consider a switchblade.  It’s a classic Italian stiletto.  It clicks open with a menacing double click.

A classic switchblade what would be carried by the Jets or the Sharks.

This is not an expensive one; I couldn’t find a maker’s mark.  The blade is stamped “rust free” so I assume it’s stainless steel and is too dull to even cleanly open envelopes.  I remember when knives came relatively dull and you put the kind of edge you wanted.  But I don’t want to sharpen it and alter the ‘factory edge’.  It has the classic release button which allows a leaf spring to fire the knife open, a slide safety and a horn handle.  I got it as part of an estate I purchased and kept it because the knife was unlocked by depressing a tab on the knife’s butt. 

But say automatic to me and I got to go with Pro-Tech knives. 

Pro-Tech Knives, LLC is a family knife company owned and founded by Dave Wattenberg.  They have been building high quality American Made knives since 1998.

Pro-Tech produces about 12,000 knives per year and its most famous models are the Godfather, Godson, and the Runt J4.  You’ll see Pro-Techs in the hands of the U.S. Military and law enforcement including the Secret Service and US Marshall's Service.  You’ll also see them in the hands of collectors and anyone demanding high performance from an automatic knife.

(Hint:  Get yourself a collaboration between Pro-Tech and Boker.  It’s a sweet little auto. You will not be disappointed!)

I’ve always wanted a Godfather.  Not any of the variations.  I wanted the Tuxedo.  For years I watched the one with an actual Ivory insert.  But then, when we were still relatively ivory friendly, it was out of my price range.  But the ivory micarta, that was just too powerful of a call.  I went with the black blade to compliment the black and white motif.  I can’t help but think of Dino, Sammy, Frankie and the rest of the Las Vegas rat pack when I see it open.

Pro Tech 's Godfather It's pissy eligant!

It’s a big knife.  Take it down a step and you’ll see the Godson and I found one I liked. Same good lines but I went with Bruce Shaw’s Steampunk copper insert. 

Steampunk?  It is a visited reality in which Jules Verne’s world still exists.  It just matured a little and discovered sexy.

If you needed to cut the mooring line a dirigible and escape in your velociped, this is the knife you need 

Shaw received his art training at Cal-State University at Los Angeles and graduated as a mechanical engineer, and what could be a better background for Steampunk?  He started engraving in 1978 and has been engraving full time since 1984.  The copper plate features engravings of gears and mechanisms of a mechanical watch some of which drive one of his classic skulls.  It was a limited edition and I was just lucky enough to be in the right place.

If you think of the Godfather and Godson as part of a family of knives, then the limited production of their Rockeye Auto PK custom has to be the hippy uncle from the LSD 70s.

Dude, it's time for the Airplane on next!  They follow Cream.

The Rockeye line was designed by Les George.  Les started making knives in 1992 and found a kindred soul in master builder Stan Fujisaka of Kaneohe, Hawaii to show him the ropes.  Sadly, Stan passed away on New Year’s Eve just a few hours before the arrival of the new 2014.  One has to wonder what kind of knife shows they must have in the afterlife. 

Having served in the Marines with a wide variety of jobs, Les has developed well-defined ideas about what how knives and tools should be made for use.  You can see this in the strong blade and handle of the Rockeye line.

The handle was anodized by Peter Kellett, who may be best known for his unique, one of a kind art of amazing designs of metal guitars and Pro-Tech knives.  I was told, but can’t confirm, that only four, maybe eight of these knives were made and again I was at the right place.

If you had a cousin knife from the Deep South, maybe New Orleans or the swamps of Florida, it would be the TR-3 Alligator.  The Tactical Response 3 is a favorite with law enforcement and military.  They are hardworking knives with a 3.5 inch blade, an automatic knife that is slender and fits nicely in the pocket.  But I can almost guarantee none of them are carrying the TR-3 purple alligator.  Artist Peter Kellett returns to marry a purple alligator and a mother of pearl release button to a tactical knife. 

I hear to tell chicken taste like gator.  Where can I get me some?  

I like the style of Pro-Tech knives.  I especially like their custom or ‘arty knives’.  You can go to their website (http://www.protechknives.com/product-category/automatic/) and find some amazing knives.  How about a left-handled Godson in basic black?